Paradise Helicopters - Volcano, Lava & Waterfalls Flight from Hilo / Doors-on Hilo's Fire & Falls Adventure (40min)
The only way to see lava
This is exactly as described, a 40 minute helicopter tour of the volcanoes on the eastern side of the island of Hawaii and the area around Hilo. The staff are very friendly and the entire operation is well run and safety oriented. Our pilot Joyce was informative and did a great job of piloting so that everyone on both sides of the helicopter got good views of everything. Considering that there are no active lava flows at the current time. This is the only way to see molten lava. While it is through "sky lights" looking down into lava tubes, it is still quite exciting to see the bright pink/orange glow of lava.
The helicopter company offers the option to fly with the doors off the helicopter. I would recommend this for optimum viewing and picture taking. However, be aware that it is pretty chilly with the doors off and make sure to wear a warm jacket.
As a final note, when booking a helicopter tour, be aware that there are two airports on the island (Hilo and Kona). Make certain that you are booking a tour from the airport that is on your side of the island. I made a mistake and booked a tour out of the wrong airport. It was completely my fault and I did not realize my mistake until the day before the tour. The folks at Veltra and at the helicopter company went out of their way to get us booked on this tour at the last minute. They also worked hard to find someone else to take our seats on the tour that I had originally booked. They were only able to fill one of the two seats that I had booked, but at least they were kind enough to refund that portion of the fee.
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| Packages: | Doors-on Hilo's Fire & Falls Adventure (40min) | ||
| Attended as: | Families | ||
| Posted on: | 2014/07/28 | ||
| Activity Date: | 2014/07/25 | ||
| See individual review | |||
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Summit to Sea - Hawaii Volcanoes National Park Biking Tours [Open Soon]
Bike Tour of Volcanoes National Park was more informative that I would have imagined
My teen aged son and I enjoyed the bike tour of Volcanoes National Park very much. Pretty, who drove the van, passed out snacks and handled logistics, was super well organized and very friendly. She also gave us some interesting "tid bits" of Hawaiian culture. Megan, our guide was a recent geology graduate with a specialty in Volcanology. She was fantastically knowledgable about all of the geology and we learned much more than we would have if we had toured the park on our own.
The cycling is mostly down hill and anyone in reasonable physical condition should be able to enjoy this tour. The weather varies from fairly cool, windy and damp (rainy) to sunny and warm. I would recommend dressing in layers with a water resistant jacket, in order to be comfortable the whole tour.
All in all this is a great way to see all of the highlights of Volcanoes National Park and learn far more than you would without an expert geologist.
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| Attended as: | Families | ||
| Posted on: | 2014/07/27 | ||
| Activity Date: | 2014/07/24 | ||
| See individual review | |||
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